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Scottish Government must not renege on previous commitments - 14 November 2007

The Scottish Government must honour commitments previously made when implementing the new efficiency regime, the FDA said today. The FDA is the union that represents senior managers and professionals in the Scottish Government. Jim Caldwell, FDA Scottish Secretary, said: "Today's announcement marks the start of a difficult three-year period for departments in the Scottish Government with average annual increases to budgets of just 1.4%." The Government also announced an increase in annual efficiency savings from 1.5% to 2% as part of the new Efficient Government Programme. "The FDA will be looking to the current administration to re-affirm its previous commitments that there will be no compulsory redundancies over the three years to 2011. "We will also be seeking a commitment given by the previous Government that money saved will be ring-fenced, so that it feeds back into the areas where savings have been made." "While the FDA recognises that every government has the right to determine its spending plans, we believe there must be a clear match between the Government's priorities and the resources made available to departments." ### Notes for Editors 1. The FDA is the trade union and professional body representing 17,000 of the UKâ€™s senior civil and public servants. Our members include policy advisors, senior managers, tax inspectors, economists, statisticians, accountants, special advisers, government lawyers, diplomats, crown prosecutors and NHS managers. 2. The FDA (formerly the First Division Association) should be referred to simply as "The FDA" and can be described as "the senior public servants' union". 3. For further information contact: â€¢ Jim Caldwell, Scottish Secretary, tel: 07967 126778 â€¢ Oliver Rowe, Communications Officer, tel: 020 7401 5588 or 07751 366680.